


Messages Worth Listening

by Breyito



Series: What If...? [3]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, And Steve Rogers broke it, Angst, Captain America: Civil War (Movie) Spoilers, Child Loss, Gen, Hurt Tony Stark, M/M, Mpreg, Post-Captain America: Civil War (Movie), Stubborn Steve Rogers, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Needs a Hug
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-10
Updated: 2016-07-20
Packaged: 2018-07-22 17:16:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,123
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7447447
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Breyito/pseuds/Breyito
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Steve is going to realise in the worst possible way what happens when you let pride, rage and fear cloud your judgment. What happens when you don't <i>listen</i>.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. PART I

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! It's been a few days since I last posted anything and the reason is easy enough: FINALS.  
> So, this is probably (I say 'probably' because you should never ever underestimate the power of procrastination =/ ) the last thing you'll get for this week.  
> And I'll leave you with an unfinished work!! YAY ^^  
> This idea has been in my head since early on, but I've just gotten the motivation to write it. It's sad, I won't lie to you. Also, you get more Steve's POV; which is kind of new, so tell me if it works ;P  
> Every 'medical' thing that shows up in my story was researched, though not very thorougly, because I'm lazy. Also, the 12-week thing was an especific case; it's not normal but it could happen.  
> BTW, I absolutely LOVE the conversations that came up in the comment section. I love talking to you! And your opinions are so interesting and refreshing ;)  
> Thank you for all the love you've shown me. You guys are the best.  
> Hope you enjoy it!  
> [EDITED]: 5/5/2018. I have not seen IW yet, so I decided to revise the chapters already posted and finish the rest, before watching that movie.

The whole place it’s in absolute chaos. Police officers, Security, CIA, and Interpol are trying to organize the politicians, family members and by-standers there are everywhere. MET and other Search and Rescue parties were looking and tending victims. The Press is doing a remarkable job of being in everyone’s way and making people even more volatile. But that’s not it.

, King T’Chaka had been pushing for the Accords, but he had been _reasonable_ , kind, and he had wanted accountability, not super-humans in leashes, as a few of the representatives (Thaddeus Ross first and foremost among them) wish. Tony supposes that’s because of the ‘Black Panther Warrior’ thing, generation after generation. It’s not like _he_ had spied on Wakanda… it’s that SHIELD, HYDRA or whatever they were, had a very detailed file on the Royal Family of Wakanda.  One that Tony had deleted from every server and site he could and gave the only copy left to the late King, as a sign of respect…just not _before_ reading it and taking some mental notes. So, King T’Chaka understood the necessity to protect the people from the Avengers…but also the necessity to protect the Avengers from the people _handling_ these documents. Tony wouldn’t trust Ross with the care of a goat, to be perfectly honest. Sometimes the Omega is _really_ disappointed on Ellis and his choices…

But all of that hard work is in the balance now, because King T’Chaka is _dead_ and his son, Prince T’Challa (he assumes he is the King of Wakanda now, or will be very soon) is furious and grieving and; according to Natasha; wants to kill Barnes himself. Furthermore, he is concerned about T’Challa obviously not being ready to take over the throne; not after a tragedy like this. They just cannot trust him to make a rational decision after today.

And Steve...God, _Steve_. His Alpha must be devastated right now. Losing Aunt Peggy hadn’t been easy on him either, but Tony, despite wanting to be there for his Alpha, had stayed in the last seats of the church not wanting to interrupt the ceremony. She deserved all the honors. But Steve had lost one of the only two connections he had left to his past; and now that Barnes was been accused of such serious crime…Tony only hoped that he could calm him down by talking to him. He hadn’t listened to Natasha, but maybe he will listen to his Omega? He absolutely _hates_ to use this happy news to try and bring Steve in, but he needs his Alpha by his side more than ever…the _Avengers_ need their Captain more than ever.

So, with a heavy heart, he looks for an empty hallway and sneaks into the bathroom (it’s easy to avoid people, because its lunch time and even with this tragedy, people got hungry and headed for the cafeteria). After making sure no one is there, he locks the door and sits on one of the toilets with the lid on. Then, he calls his Alpha.

_[“Hello, you’ve reached Steve Rogers. I’m not available right now, so please leave a message after the tone and I’ll call you back as soon as I can.]_

“Steve? Come on, answer your cell, babe. I don’t want to do this over the phone.”

He waits for a few minutes, then tries again.

_[“Hello, you’ve reached Steve Rogers. I’m not available right now, so please leave a message after the tone and I’ll call you back as soon as I can.]_

“Steve, answer your phone. I know you talked to Natasha, now please talk to me. Call me back?”

He waits a bit longer this time; waiting for Steve to call him back. He usually calls him back. But the minutes pass and his phone doesn’t ring, so he calls once more.

_[“Hello, you’ve reached Steve Rogers. I’m not available right now, so please leave a message after the tone and I’ll call you back as soon as I can.]_

“Alright” he sighs “Look, I know you don’t agree with the Accords, but they are not so awful, okay? Things seem pretty bad right now, but we can work through this, if we do it _together_. The team deployed to bring in Bucky won’t kill him, I doubt they could even hurt him, and when he is secured you can see him. Rhodey will be there, in the War Machine suit, to make sure everything goes smoothly; because I didn’t bring mine. The UN has a psychiatrist ready to talk to Barnes, and I **_promise_** you that nothing will happen to him. Personally, I don’t believe it was him, Steve, because even if he did set the bomb-which again, I don’t think it was him- he has more experience than Natasha and he wouldn’t have let himself be caught on camera. Just…listen, okay?”   
>> “I…” Tony swallows. “I really didn’t want to do this over the phone (I am hiding inside the bathroom, the only place that has no cameras in this building); because I don’t want you to think I’m trying to manipulate you or something. I am really not. I only found out after Lagos, and it didn’t seem the right time, you know? But I guess there’s not always a ‘right time’ with these things; sometimes you just have to say it. So…I…I…I’m pregnant, Steve.” Pause. “It doesn’t feel real yet, you know? I have three little pieces of you inside me, Steve, there are **_three_.** ” He says, sobbing and laughing at the same time. “The Doctor says it might be too soon to tell the genders (I am thirteen weeks along), but he is almost certain that its two boys and a girl. I know it’s probably way too soon to be thinking about names, but I thought that we could name the girl Maria Sarah Margaret, or Sarah Maria Margaret…or something like that. And the boys…would it be too weird if both have James as a middle name? One for my James…one for yours?” another wet laugh.  
>>“I know, I know, I’m babbling, but I can’t stop it. I’m so nervous. And I’m scared. I’m running ragged here. **_I need you_** with me right now, Steve, I can’t do this alone. I’m trying to keep our family together and keep us safe, so please, **_please_ Alpha** , don’t do anything reckless. Come to us, come to **_me_** , and together we will make this right. I love you so much, Steve,” says Tony in a chocked voice “I want you happy; and that means that I care about Bucky Barnes too. I’ll do everything I can to help him, I promise.” A brief pause and a deep breath. “Don’t leave us alone, Alpha, please. Love you.”

\---{}---

On a Quinjet, the same they used to go to Peggy’s funeral, Steve gets out of the bathroom, fully changed into his tactic gear, and reaches towards his bag to place his folded clothes inside. He sees a blinking light on his StarkPhone, signaling he has voicemail. He sits down and presses the phone to his ear.

_[You have 3 new voicemails.]_

_[To hear the message, press 1. To save the message, press 2. To delete the message, press 3. To call the person who left you the message, press 4. To listen to the next message, press 5.]_

Steve presses 1.

_[Monday, May 16 th, 01:04 pm]_

_“Steve? Come on, answer your cell, babe. I don’t want to do this over the phone.”_

_[End of message 1]_

It’s Tony. _Of course_ it’s Tony. He presses 3, then 5.

_[Monday, May 16 th, 01:17 pm]_

_“Steve, answer your phone. I know you talked to Natasha, now please talk to me. Call me back?”_

_[End of message 2]_

Again, he presses 3, then 5.

_[Monday, May 16 th, 01:33 pm]_

_“Alright” sigh “Look, I know you don’t agree with the Accords, but they are not so awful, oka-”_

Steve presses 3.

 _[You have deleted the message.]_ Pause. _[There are no more messages.]_

He looks at the background photo: a shot of Tony, sleepy with his head on the table, clutching an empty coffee mug and begging with his eyes for someone to fill it. With a pang on his chest he crushes his phone and after asking Sam to open the door for a moment; he throws the pieces out, to be spread by the wind. He has heard enough. Right now he has no time for people who won’t listen. He needs to get to Bucky.

\---{}---

\---{}---

\---{}---

Wakanda is, in simple words, pretty cool. The tech is really sleek and cutting-edge, and if the Avengers hadn’t been living with Tony Fucking Stark for the past years, Steve would be amazed. He is not, though, because some things might be new or a bit different, but Tony’s tech on his home is always more advanced than the products that go to mass production (JARVIS, FRIDAY, the hologram screens, the sensors and many other, wonderful things that Tony never lets out of his sight). So, all in all, Steve could say that Wakanda’s tech is somewhat…normal for him. But he doesn’t, because he imagines that hear that opinion coming from a 40’s man could hurt egos and sensibilities.

The TVs though, those are absolutely fine. They always have the one in the communal space on, just in case. After almost six weeks of being isolated from the outside world; he understands his team’s need for a 24/7 information source. In the two months they’ve all been here together, the TV must have been off two or three time, at most. It’s almost lunch time, so everyone is in the room, talking, sharing awkward laughs. But as soon as the female voice starts talking, a freezing silence sets in.

 _“….And in other news, Tony Stark AKA Iron Man, has entered his eight week of coma. As you surely know, Dr. Stark was brought in the 20 th of May, after a brutal fight in Siberia with the now ex-Captain America and the Winter Soldier. He was dehydrated, malnourished, severely concussed and with several broken ribs (both from the repeated smashing of the Shield against his head and his chest), suffering from blood loss (details as to what wound could have caused that were kept confidential) and bond withdrawal. With the sum of each week, the hope of Tony Stark waking up is slowly dying. People from all around the world have been sending letters, flowers, balloons, cards, plushies, and a number of other things. Villages from the Middle East, Africa, Asia (locations were Iron Man actions finally brought peace after years of war, terrorism and death) have been praying for the hero to open his eyes. Kids from almost every school in the fifty States have sent drawings, photos and little presents.”_ Dramatic pause. The reporter stares at the camera, and she looks really mad. _“And yet; not a **word** from Captain America. He obviously hasn’t shown up (as he is considered a terrorist and would be arrested on sight); but he hasn’t sent cards, or called or asked for information about the state of his Omega. This has been **confirmed** by a confidential source with access to SI and Avengers Compound communication system. So we must wonder: was his intention for Tony Stark to die when he abandoned him in Siberia? Were his plans ruined by Vision and Pepper Potts when they saved the hero? I remember very well the outrage when they came out as a Bonded Couple to the world. Everyone thought that Steve Rogers deserved better than Tony Stark. And yet…it seems like the whole world was wrong about them. In the end, it was Captain America ( **ex** -Captain America, excuse me) who bailed on his Bonded, after attempting to murder him.”_ With a last glacial look at the camera, the woman keeps talking. _“Now let’s talk about…”_

Ever since the first sentence, Steve feels himself pale and shake. He had _no idea_. How was it that he had no idea? It shouldn't be possible. But Steve doesn’t stay to face the wrath of this team mates (he can feel the daggers on the back of his head; can hear the sparks from Wanda’s fingers), he just runs towards T’Challa’s office


	2. PART II

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello guys! I'm really sorry for taking this long, but RL is a bitch sometimes, and exams, family and a bout of writer's block are demanding and frustrating. Thank you for being patient!  
> Besides, this story never _ends_!!! It just keeps on going and I don't want to leave things in half. This chapter alone is easily twice as long as the first one! So, this will have at least one more chapter, that will be uploaded tomorrow. Hope you don't mind ;P  
>  Also, I tried to balance the fluff and the angst...although there's obviously more angst ^^ Alternating POVs and timelines again, too. Things in both timelines are moving foward, but Tony and Rhodey's are in CW, and Rogers' are after CW and the news of last chapter. Tell me if it works!  
> The last part of Press Statements will be done soon too, so hopefully I'll post both things tomorrow (and by tomorrow I mean later today).  
> I'm adding tags as I go, because I don't want to spoil anything, and some things are just meant to be surprises *wink*  
> As always, any mistakes are mine and please correct me if you notice them (there should be even more in this because it's 5 am and I'm really tired).  
> Hope you enjoy it!  
> BTW, I'm completely _baffled_ by the lack of Stony fics right now! I look with the 'post-cacw' tags and it's all Stucky!!!! Come on, people! ¬¬

_‘God, will this day ever **end**?_ ’ Tony wonders. Everett Ross has just called him; and things are even worse than this morning, as impossible as that might seem. Severely hurt officers, dead officers, endangered civilians, _dead_ civilians, an uncontrollable Black Panther, a locked Winter Soldier, a rebellious Captain America and his loyal dog the Flacon… Jesus _Christ_ , what a mess.

All of them are on the way; but Rhodey came back flying the War Machine armor, so of course he is here sooner. For now, they are alone in one of the conference rooms. Tony cannot help but think that his Steve wouldn’t have done this if he heard the voicemails; so maybe he ditched his phone after talking with Natasha?

“FRIDAY” starts Tony suddenly. “Do you know if Steve listened to the messages I left him?” he asks, desperately holding onto that hope.

“ _He did, Boss. He heard and deleted all three messages._ ” Pause. “ _I’m sorry, Boss._ ” She sounds sad, that’s the thing. How pathetic is he, that even his own creations feel pity for him?

“Tones, you alright?” Asks Rhodey; because he is the best person (Alpha, Beta or Omega) that Tony has ever met. He really doesn’t know what he would do without his Rhodey.

“Always.” He answers, with a bitter smile on his face. “I just thought that the…news would be enough to make him think things through and not do stupid _bullshit_ like this.” A bitter laugh resonates in the see-through room. “I was wrong, obviously. I just hope that his… _need_ to protect Barnes convinces him of signing. I don’t have anything else to offer General Ross if he doesn’t.” ends the brunette, with a grimace.

“Hey” says Rhodey, pulling Tony towards his chest, letting him rest for a minute; like the Alpha always does when his friend needs comfort and they are in a public place. Even if they are ‘alone’ right now, there is always someone watching. “I’m with you, alright? Always; I’ll _always_ have your back, Tones.” He murmurs in the Omega’s ear, feeling Tony shake in his arms, while he gently rubs his back to calm him down.

“I know, Jim, I know. I don’t know what I’d do without you, my Rhodey.” the brunette answers, giving him a wobbly smile. Tony takes a step back and locks his eyes with the Alpha. He kisses the older man in the cheek and hugs him a last time, throwing his arms around the strong neck.

Then, he unlocks his arms and takes several steps back, puts his mask on its place and prepares to greet a grieving and raging King, an Assassin, his Alpha and a loyal dog.

\---{}---

\---{}---

\---{}---

“Did you know about this!?” Steve growls, as soon as he is through T’Challa’s office door. The King lifts his eyes from the paperwork on his dark wooden desk and pins him with an impassive gaze.

“Knew about what?” Questions the Wakandan.

“About Tony! About his…his _state_.” the blond chokes out.

“You mean about the coma Dr. Stark has been in since he was rescued after your battle in Siberia?” Asks the Black Panther; a disapproving note on his tone.

“ _Yes_ ” Hisses the ex-Captain. “Did.you. _knew_.about.it?” He repeats, taking a few steps forward, glaring with all his might at the King.

“Yes, of course I did.”

“Then why didn’t you _tell me_!?” The American yells.

“I observed you for a few days after Dr. Stark was found, Captain, and judging from your behavior; you did not wish to learn about your Omega. You changed new channels as soon as his name or his company was mentioned; ignored anything related to him in the media; never questioned me about him or his health and any time someone tried to talk to you about him, Mr. Rogers, you shut them down. So, per your requests, I decided not to bother you with news about his health.” Explains T’Challa, and despite his impassive demeanor, the blond can detect a hint of disgust on his eyes.

Steve falls silent at this, because, who wouldn’t? What decent human being wouldn’t feel revolted by him in this very moment? He attacked his Omega, and abandoned his badly injured Mate in the middle of a wasteland, left him stranded and defenseless, to boot. Broken bones, blood loss, hypothermia, concussions… _God_ , Tony was so close to dying…how did he not _notice_ that? The Bond should have made him feel part of it; sense his mate slipping from life and feel his pain. But he doesn’t feel a thing. All this time he thought Tony was blocking him, building wall upon wall to stop Steve from noticing how much his betrayal injured the Omega (which it’s useless, because every time he closes his eyes for more than a second, he sees those deep brown eyes full of incredulity, sadness, rage, raw _hurt_ ).

He needs to go to Tony. He _has_ to help his Omega. He already filled his role as friend, now it’s time for him to redeem himself to Tony by carrying out his duty as an Alpha. He needs to be beside his Omega. Has to find a way to get to the States and into whatever hospital Tony is in.

Judging by the way the King is looking at him, though, T’Challa won’t help him.

But he might just have the man for the job.

 Time to talk with certain fan of his.

\---{}---

\---{}---

\---{}---

“Are you sure about this?” asks Rhodey, watching him with concerned eyes. “You already got beaten today, and Barnes hit you right in your belly…I’m really not comfortable with you going with us to that fight.” The Alpha seems really worried, mouth tight and a frown on his forehead.

“I know; that scared the _shit_ out of me.” The brunette fiddles with his gauntlet for a moment, not meeting Jim’s eyes. Then he takes a deep breath and locks eyes with the other man. “But I really don’t think that this will become a full-on fight, you know? I believe that Steve will listen to us; he _has_ to. And Sam should get what we are trying to do with the Accords, the accountability and all is a strong concept on the military, after all.” He breaths in once more, letting the air out slowly. “And I hope he thinks of his children before starting something that could hurt us.”

There is a minute or two of quiet, in which they both finish putting on their armors, and then they stay there, in an uneasy silence. But Jim sees the glow of unshed tears and the deep pain in Tony’s eyes. He was always able to detect it, even if he wasn’t always able to solve the issue.

“Tony…”

“It’s just-” Starts the Omega, his voice raw. “I thought he would _care_ , you know? About what could happen to me, to our _babies_.” A sob escapes Tony. Rhodey regrets deeply the fact that he can only embrace the brunette in the suit, not give him physical comfort. “God, why am I such a fuck-up that not even my own _Alpha_ cares for me or his own _children_ , Rhodey? What _is it_ about me that-” By now a few tears have rolled down the brunette’s cheeks, and those deep brown orbs are so sad and broken that Jim wants to rip Rogers apart. “They are not even born yet and I already _ruined_ it for them, I’m-” His whimpers interrupt him.

“Hey, hey, Tones.” The Alpha starts, removing his gauntlet and caressing one wet cheek. “This is _not_ on you. You are _magnificent_ , and Rogers is too blind and too much of an idiot to see it. You are the most caring, giving, _sweet_ Omega (hell, _person_ ) I’ve ever met; and these babies will be the most lucky ones in the world, because you are going to be a loving, careful and dedicated mother. And they will love you and cherish you for it, and because you deserve it. And you know the best part, for me?” Rhodey asks, relieved to see the tears have stopped and there is a minute smile on the Omega’s lips. Tony shakes his head. “That I will be there, with you; every step of the way. I’ll witness every change you go through, will be there when they are born, will help you help them walk, and will laugh with you when their first words turn out to be ‘robot’ or ‘dummy’.” They both laugh at this, and the room feels less tense already. “I love you, okay? You _know_ that.” They both know Jim means it in more than one way, but right now it’s not the time. “And I’ll do everything I can to make you happy.” He presses a kiss on the brunette’s forehead. “I promise you everything will be alright.”

\---{}---

\---{}---

\---{}---

Steve runs back to the communal rooms, hoping that Scott is still there. He is out of breath. He is rarely out of breath, after the Serum.

When he gets there, he sees Bucky, sitting still on one of the couches and staring at the TV, which is showing the crowd of people outside the hospital, the candles and the walls covered in cards, drawings, photos… Sam is standing by the window, looking at the Jungle, so different from home.

“Hey, have any of you seen Scott?” He asks, relieved that he doesn’t have to go and look for them himself. He is going to need Sam and Bucky on this one.

Neither of them answer.

“Hey, Buc-”

“We did that” says Bucky, not moving at all. He is still facing the TV but his words are meant for Steve, there’s no doubt.

“Buck-” tries the blond.

“ _We…_ did that”. The brunet repeats. “To him, to your _Omega_.” It’s like he is still trying to process it. Meanwhile, Sam has turned around to watch them. The pilot has a severe expression on his face, arms crossed in front of his chest. But he doesn’t speak, just _looks_ at Steve like he should _do_ something.

Steve hates seeing Bucky like this, a shadow of the man he once knew. This Bucky is ridden with guilt and anxiety and paranoia. This man is always thinking about the Winter Soldier victims and doesn’t listen to him when Steve tries to tell him it’s not his fault. But this? What happened to Tony wasn’t because HYDRA or Zemo controlled his mind, it wasn’t a mission. Tony went to help them, admitted his mistake and tried to work with them. And then…and then the video happened and everything went to shit. Steve knows Bucky would have let Tony kill him, if it wasn’t because Steve himself got into the fight. It was _his_ fault for keeping the truth to himself all these years, not Bucky’s; but in that moment there was no other thing he could have done. He _had_ to save Bucky from Tony and Steve knew- _thought_ that his Mate would be okay. What happened to Tony is Steve (and Tony’s too, let’s be honest, he didn’t need to attack Bucky because the man wasn’t guilty, that was HYDRA) fault.

Thing is, he doesn’t know how to make this Bucky _listen_ to him, how to make him understand that. But before he can try to, Clint enters the room from the hallway, a phone on his ear and a bag on his other hand. He leaves the bag on the couch and talks to whoever is on the other side of the line.

“Yeah…yeah. Okay, I’ll see you there. Bye.” He hangs up and looks at the hall, and Wanda walks up to him, a backpack on her back and holding a handbag. They talk among themselves for a little while, then the young female Alpha nods and Clint grabs his bag again and starts walking with her on tow.

“We are leaving, Rogers.”

“Wha-Clint?” Steve asks, baffled. He knows he has things to explain to his team, if the way Clint is glaring at him or how Wanda won’t look at him is anything to go by.

“I called Nat; it turns out her decision to stay out of Wakanda has less to do with the King and more to do with her not standing the sight of _you_. God, I knew there was something you weren’t telling us, but beating Stark half to dead and leave him to _die_?” The shorter blond takes a few deep breaths and then “I’d have never believed you to be such a coward if I hadn’t seen it myself.” he finishes. It hurts, that his teammate thinks so lowly of him.

Before he can retort and say something to make Clint and Wanda change their minds, Scott comes out of the hallway, also with a bag ready. He can’t look at Steve in the eyes either, but the blond can’t let him leave; Lang is his only real chance of getting to Tony.

“Scott, don’t go.” he starts. An awkward pause. “Please.” He adds at last.

“Why do you want him to stay, Rogers? You never seemed overly interested in him before.” Says Clint, before his eyes widen as he comes up with the answer. “Of course; you need Scott and his ants to help you get to Tony. _Bastard_.” He hisses.

Said Omega seems to shrink in himself a bit, not looking up from the floor; letting Clint shield him a bit. Steve takes two steps to the left, so he can see the other man’s face, trying to get Scott to look at him.

“Please, Scott.” He says again, hoping that the words will convince Scott to face him. “I _need_ you. I need your help to go to my Omega. I wouldn’t ask if I had another choice, Scott, but I don’t. Please, Scott, help me go to my family.” Begs the blond.

“ _Family_?” spits out Clint. “ _Now_ you care about _family_!?” he yells. “You should have thought about that before all of this! I haven’t talked to my kids or my wife in two months! Lang missed his court hearing because he was on an underwater prison! Natasha hasn’t spoken a word to us since she helped us get away, except for today’s phone call! She thought all of us knew about Tony and didn’t _care_! I explained to her that we didn’t knew shit, that our _virtuous_ Captain never told us and that he made sure we ignored everything about Tony Stark on any kind of media; that saying his name or asking about him was pretty much forbidden. And of course, with how mad we were at him and how much time we spent outside after being cooped up in a cell for weeks; it was pretty easy for you to control what we should know and what we should ignore.” The archer is breathing hard, eyes shining with fury. Steve is taken aback by how much hate leaked into the beta’s words.

“That’s what you think of me? That I _hid_ this from all of you?” None of them meets his eyes, not even Sam or, God, _Bucky_. “Well!?” he growls.

“What do you want us to believe, Steve?” Asks Sam; finally meeting his eyes. “Even if you didn’t watch the news or ignored everything about your Omega for _two months_ , the bond must have told you things were bad, if not _how_ bad.” He sighs and turns his head, and it feels like rejection. “That you choose to ignore _that_ speaks more than anything.”

Steve takes a deep, _deep_ breath to calm himself. He can’t lose his temper now, not if he wants his teammates to understand and support him. Or, at least, convince Scott to stay. He _needs_ Scott, that’s nonnegotiable.

“I swear to you, I didn’t know about his state. After Siberia…I thought that Tony was blocking me, because every time I tried to reach out there was just this… _blankness_ I couldn’t get pass. I thought he was mad at me” he takes note of the fire in Clint’s eyes and adds “ _reasonably_ mad at me, and that he was preventing me from reaching him because of how hurt he was. I’d _never_ imagined that the reason I couldn’t feel him was because he was unconscious all the time.”

He holds his breath for an answer; but after one or two minutes of silence, Clint shakes his head and starts walking again. Wanda follows him without a word and without looking at Steve, just nodding in Sam’s direction.

Scott…Scott just stays where he is; vibrating with energy and nerves, but not moving. The archer looks back at him with disbelief, but then sighs.

“When you grow tired of being used by him, call me and we’ll get to you.” Says Clint, and then he and Wanda are gone.

“Scott” breaths out Steve, relieved. “ _Thank y-_ ”he tries to say, but gets interrupted.

“Don’t, Cap, just…don’t.” Says the Omega, with a hand up. “I’ll help you because _I_ got a second chance and it’s not my place to deny anyone theirs; not because I condone what you did.” With that, he turns around to get his bag. “I’ll go change. Be ready in fifteen.”

\---{}---

Later, riding in the back of a flying ant (another thing he _never_ thought he would say) with Bucky and Sam on each side, but not talking or looking at him, he thinks that the thing that torments him most is the loss of his Omega’s trust; and his team’s trust. Steve really wishes he could have done something different, but there was no other choice, no time, no way out. They were played magnificently by Zemo, like chess pieces. His hands and feet were tied, and he could only fill the role that Tony and Ross and Zemo had pushed him into. If his Omega, Rhodes, Vision and Natasha had not agreed to sign the Accords, things would have gone _so_ differently.

He had hoped that Tony would come around on his own, given time, but if his Mate is in a coma…Tony _needs_ him right now. And his team…they pretty much loathe him; though Steve knows they _will_ forgive him, when they see Tony awake and fine; and both of them together again. It’ll take work, and Steve has a lot of making up to do, but he has done nothing irreversible, so.

Things will work out. They always do.

\---{}---

\---{}---

\---{}---

Pain.

Pain.

Pain.

Voices.

_“He’s over here!!”_

Whispers.

_“My God…his own **Alpha** did this to him?”_

Cold touches.

Pain.

_“You are safe now, Mr. Stark. We will help you, sir, don’t worry.”_

_“Mr. Stark, are you with us?”_

Movement.

Pain.

_“He is in very bad shape, ribs fractured for sure, concussion, God knows what else.”_

_“Mr. Stark, I know you want to go to sleep, just a few more moments. Is anyplace in particular hurting more than others?”_

Pain.

Pain.

Pain.

“My…m-my babies…s-save my _b-babies_ …” Tony manages to get out. Only that matters.

Yelling.

_“Fuck, he’s pregnant!!”_

_“Mr. Stark! Mr. Stark, stay with us!”_

_“We are losing him! We have to move him!”_

_“I need that stretcher yesterday!”_

_“One, two, three!”_

Pain.

“H-help…them…” Whispers out the Omega, blood choking him.

Pain.

_Steve... **why**?_

Pain.

Pain.

Pa-

Blackness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, how did you liked it? Do you see where this is heading?*wink*  
> Leave me a kudos, a comment, an idea...I love our conversations!
> 
> Kisses!


	3. PART III

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So...it seems I miscalculated (again) the lenght of this story. I blame my muse, who does with me as she wants! ¬¬  
> This fic will have another chapter and maybe, perhaps, an epilogue; after all the angst and such. Because ugh, this chapter is by far the most angsty of them all so far!!  
> Also, I hope you forgive me for taking so long with the Press Statement segment! I'm thinking that Steve's part will be better as an individual fic, so instead of another chapter there will be another segment ;P  
> And, as a present, I'm posting two stories in the 'Words that come and go' series, right after posting this.  
> As always, any mistakes are mine so please inform me if you find any.  
> BTW, I know nothing about Tiberius Stone, except that he is a bastard in the comics, so...  
> Oh, almost forgot! I messed up with the timeline a bit. The Fri/Pepper scene takes place before the last scene of the last chapter, but I didn't want to create even more confusion. Sorry. Also, I'm completely half-assing numbers about the amount of agents and such; I made some very rudimentary calculations and run with that. AND, I have no experience with torture, just the info I read online or saw on TV and such.  
> Hope you enjoy!  
> And a HAPPY FRIEND'S DAY TO YOU ALL!! (Do you have that in your countries? In mine it's a big thing, and I love it ;D)  
>  **EDIT:** Also, I've been told that I should add a warning for the picture so the WARNING is on the ending notes.

The scene they find in the Hospital it’s very much the same from what was shown on the news channel; people outside lighting candles, drawings in the walls…it’s heartwarming, to know that so many people care for his Omega, that Tony did enough to warrant the affection of the public in general.

Scott makes the ants land in a big bush in the yard of the hospital, and Steve gets off, his heart beating hard with adrenaline. When Bucky and Sam don’t move to do the same, his face hardens. But with a sharp “Buck, come on” said man dismounts and joins him, face stoic. The blond squeezes the other Alpha’s right shoulder to put him at ease. It doesn’t work; the brunet is still tense as a bow string.

The Beta and Omega exchange looks, and with a nod, Scott talks:

“We will come back in three hours. If you are not here we will search for you, but if your situation is too complicated, we’ll leave you behind.”

“At least apologize for real this time?” Sam says/asks; because he knows that Steve sent that awful letter to his Omega and he suspects that either Rhodes or Potts received it and if either of them read it… neither will be happy with it.

Both Super Soldiers nod, and Sam and Scott don’t know if the nod is for the time they were given or the request made to Steve to actually _apologize_. With a sigh, Scott returns both men to their normal sizes, and they leave. As soon as they are out of sight, Steve addresses Bucky.

“I’d like for you to run the perimeter, see if there’s any special security, find some blueprints of the building, possible location for my Omega, anything like that. I’ll try to follow the Bond, I hope it’ll take me to him.” The brunet’s eyes say how stupid he thinks the plan is, but like a good soldier and a good friend, he obeys. “Try not to get caught.” The blond mocks.

“Oh, _I_ won’t get caught.” Replies Bucky, with a minute twitch of lips.

Steve laughs and waits until he can’t see his friend anymore (less than five seconds) and then starts moving. He enters the building through one of the service doors, grateful for the stubble he was too lazy to shave this last week. He starts walking but stops to memorize the layout of the building, according to the poster on the wall. He heads towards where the drawing says the ‘ICU & Coma Care Facility’ is located.

On the second turn to the left, an african american woman whistles and winks at him. He tries to shake her off, but unexpectedly a device is shot against his neck and electroshocks run through his body. The weapon was definitely built for him or other like him in mind, because he is on the floor, shaking, in a matter of seconds.

“Mr. Rogers, we’ve been waiting for you.” Says the same woman that distracted him; with a predatory expression on her face. Two men lift him up after restraining him with reinforced handcuffs, and he can barely move his head to look at her in the eyes, when she continues: “I’m in charge of Tony Stark’s safety. Now you and I will have a nice chat while someone comes to pick you up to deliver you to the proper authorities. Until then, you are at my mercy.” The female beta smiles for the first time and it’s a pretty scary smile, but he’s seen _Natasha’s_ smile. He’ll be just fine.

\---{}---

\---{}---

\---{}---

“ _Miss Potts.”_

“Oh my God, FRIDAY!” Pepper yells, so, _so_ relieved to hear the AI after two days of silence. “What happened!? Do you know where Tony is? I haven’t heard of him since Rhodey was brought into the hospital.”

“ _I need you to gather a search party with plenty of paramedics, Miss Potts. The last time I spoke with Boss he was fighting Mr. Rogers and Mr. Barnes in a HYDRA base in Siberia. He was losing; and I’m scared for his health; because that was two days ago and Mr. Rogers showed no consideration for Boss’ pregnant state. I was not able to communicate with him again.”_ You can clearly hear the worry and fear on her voice, and Pepper feels really bad for the youngest AI; she’s just an infant, for an Artificial Intelligence, and she’s had to grow at such accelerated pace…Tony always is so careful with his creations, and FRIDAY is so _young_ , he would have never throw her to the world so fast had he not need it this much.

“Alright, FRI. I’m already calling Dr. Cho to be in stand-by for when we come back with Tony.” She has to believe they are going to bring him back with them, alive, there’s no other choice. “I pray the babies are okay, otherwise I’m not sure Tony would care to live. I _curse_ the day I trusted Rogers to take care of him!” the redhead yells, and her eyes light up with flames. She reels them in quickly; this is not the place or the time to unleash her fury. Not yet.

“ _Vision too, Miss Potts. I already sent the coordinates to him, and with Mr. Rhodey in such a delicate state, I trust no one else but you and him with this task. Our medical team will be ready to leave in 30 minutes._ ”

“Okay, FRIDAY, thank you.” Whispers Pepper. “I’ll be going with them too.”

“ _Of course, Miss. I wouldn’t dare think otherwise._ ” Pause. “ _Miss Potts?_ ” Asks FRIDAY, sounding like a lost child. Pepper supposes she is, after all.

“Yes, FRIDAY?”

“ _Please bring our creator back home._ ”

\---{}---

\---{}---

\---{}---

The two men manhandle him onto the only chair there is in the truck. By the looks of it, it’s reinforced and very much capable of holding him, like the one HYDRA had put him into after his arrest in the bridge. He doesn’t like it. After magnetically securing him the two man leave, giving the woman a terse nod. She sees them get out, and Steve is surprised at how all of them look at him with disgust. He doesn’t hid it very well, it seems, because she says:

“God, you have _no idea_ , do you?” The woman snorts, shaking her head in disbelief. “Do you think people just started hating you after Siberia? _Please._ The hate Steve Rogers inspires didn’t suddenly _happen_. People (me and my family included) have been hating Captain America since the fall of SHIELD. And no” she says when Steve open his mouth “I was never HYDRA, or anything like that.

“I was just a rookie agent, no one important. I believed that SHIELD was protecting the world and that my work helped to save lives. Then, in the middle of a mission in Poland, my team and I are left stranded. No comms, no back-up, _nothing_. We got caught by a mob that SHIELD had pissed off a while back, a few hours later. It…it wasn’t pretty.” She laughs bitterly and lifts her dark hair on her left side of her head, showing him a scar where her ear should be. “I was the lucky one, actually, the _only_ lucky one.” Her eyes look far away for a moment, and she shudders before coming back to herself. “I was the leader, and therefore the one with the most information. So they didn’t touch me, not until the others where all dead. The first one to go was Brown; he was shot in the head as soon as all of us woke up. They beat us around for a few hours, some burns, bruised ribs, black eyes… Collins was the next; she disrespected the leader, so they cut off her tongue and let her choke in her own blood. Then Spencer and I were the only ones left, and they took us away, undressed us and hosed us with frigid water. They left both of us stew until the next day, naked and shivering in a humid, cold and dark cell that was barely big enough for both of us.

“Spencer was our tech savvy (which of course they knew thanks to Romanoff’s data dump on the net), and the last one of my unit, so he knew he was gonna be the next one. He made me promise I wouldn’t break for him. He was right; as soon as they took us out they tied us in front of each other and started with him. First it was his fingernails, taken one by one. Then they brought a hammer and started breaking his fingers one at the time; asking me questions in between, questions I didn’t know the answer to or I wouldn’t answer. I broke when one of the goons said that he liked blondes and would love to take the kid for a ride. He was barely nineteen! So I broke and screamed that I would tell them everything I knew. The leader just looked at me and laughed as he slit Spencer’s throat. Said that they were just playing with us, that they knew everything they wanted thanks to the _Black Widow_ and _Captain America_.” She spit the names as if they were poison. “They were about to cut off my other ear when Iron Man showed up. He captured some and killed the rest, except the leader; he left her to _me_.” Her smile is fierce, and Steve suppresses a shiver.

A heavy silence settles in. The woman is lost to her thoughts and Steve is thinking about how he can over-power her in these fucking _cuffs_ and get to his Omega’s room. Then she slapped him so hard it actually _hurt_ him, and he looked back at her, surprised.

“You are not even thinking about it!!” She yells. “You don’t even _care_ about the hundreds of agents and personnel you threw into the fire when you destroyed SHIELD!! People who were honest, working hard and doing _good_!!” Steve doesn’t understand. SHIELD was _HYDRA_ , had always been infiltrated by Zola and his ilk, so why does this woman hate him? He exposed them, he _saved the world_.

“I- I don’t understand you, ma’am. HYDRA had to be-” is as far as he gets.

“I am _not_ talking about fucking HYDRA!! I’m talking about _SHIELD_!! I’m talking about the families you drew a fucking target on! Those files you dropped into the net had information about HYDRA missions, of course, but did you stop even a second to think about what _else_ was on those files? Names of agents, informants, superhumans, dates, undercover missions ( _on-going_ undercover missions too). Names of the families of some of the agents; their children’s schools, teachers, friends; their partners’ names and jobs. Neighbors, friends, colleagues, relatives they may have not seen in _years_ …you put them all in risk!” She takes a deep breath.

“367 agents and workers of _SHIELD_ had families all over the world when the Helicarriers fell.  89 partners, 34 lone members and 57 _whole families_ were abducted by mobs, enemies of SHIELD, crazy people, random citizens that weren’t pleased with us, etc. Do you know what was done to them? How many died? How many lived? _How_ they managed to live? 73 families lost at least one member. 26 minors, 32 older than eighteen and 15 elders were killed. Many were mutilated, burned, flagellated, choked, starved, raped, branded, scalped, and many other, awful things; or forced to watch as their loved ones got tortured.” She breaths deep again and clenches her hand so hard they become white. “And that’s not even counting the others! Informants, distant relatives, doctors, lawyers, ex-agents… There are too many to count.” She looks right at him and her black eyes seem alight with fury.

“Oh, if you wondered, Tony Stark is the one who saved those who could be saved. He organized rescues with the military, international agencies, local police forces (and Iron Patriot, of course), paid ransoms, negotiated, rescued a lot of people in his own armor, managed to divert some funds of SHIELD-HYDRA to paid for medical care and all kinds of treatments… He also got most of us jobs in SI: security, technical support, accounting, lawyers... And when there was no place anymore, he talked to other companies, or Agencies like the CIA or FBI. He run himself to the ground, fixing your mess.” She paused a moment. “You must have wondered why your Omega wasn’t paying attention to you, his mighty Alpha. Why your Omega wasn’t by your side 24/7 comforting you, am I right?” Steve flushes, because she is right; he _did_ wondered that and had never allowed Tony to explain why he went missing for days; thinking it was SI and his tinkering, nothing else. The woman laughs. “ _Of_ _course_ I’m right.”

Steve is still processing all the information she dumped on his lap when she clicks her tongue and he looks at her. She smirks at him, the same smile that sent shivers up his spine a few minutes ago.

“The whole hospital is full with people that would die and kill for Tony Stark. We are not security hired to protect him; we are ex-Agents of SHIELD and we are here out of our own will, and _that_ makes us even more dangerous.” She pauses for a second. “You are _really_ lucky that Col. Rhodes is in his physical therapy right now; and that Miss Potts is in a SI meeting in France. I doubt you’d still be alive otherwise.”

With that said, she turns around and leaves, locking the heavy metal door behind her.

\---{}---

\---{}---

\---{}---

_Hypothermia_

_Head trauma_

_Concussion_

_Broken wrist_

_Sprained ankle_

_Shattered collarbone_

_Broken sternum_

_Broken and cracked ribs_

_Severe internal bleeding_

_First stage of Bond Withdrawal; worsening all the other injuries._

_Probably miscarriage_

_Probably miscarriage_

**_Probably miscarriage_ **

_Emergency surgery to replace the fiberglass sternum and ribs._

_Emergency surgery to determinate the possibility to save the fetuses and the mother._

_There is a high probability that we may have to terminate the pregnancy in order to save the carrier._

_Extremis might be our only choice to save them. Or even just to save **him**._

The words don’t stop ringing in his ears and he doesn’t know what to do. He can’t keep up with it all. He just lost his legs, goddamn it, and he is useless, useless, _useless_. He failed the only Omega he swore to protect, all those years ago. He _failed_ and his Omega (only no he is not, not his, never his, because of Howard and Tiberious and Stane and _Rogers_ , and not _his_ ) paid the price.

Tony has been in surgery for _hours_ , and Helen only came out once, a devastated expression on her face; to give him a little pink bundle of fabric with something precious inside. Rhodey opened the little cloth with tears in his eyes, and a sob left his lips when he saw the [treasure](http://www.actuall.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/NoahSmith_505_701_55.jpg) inside. Until that moment he had never wondered how a 13-week baby looked like, he just thought it was a bunch of cells. But this? This was a little, perfectly formed human being. A baby. A _dead_ baby. And judging by the color of the cloth, it was Tony’s little girl, Maria.

 _God_ , the Omega had been so excited, so _thrilled_ because he was going to have a baby girl. He was happy to carry all of their children, of course, but a daughter had always been his dream, to be able to call his daughter like his beloved mother. Rhodey knew what name Tony had chosen for his princess: Maria Sarah Margaret, because he was a dork like that. Yet this little bundle of pink cloth held her little body; that had been taken from a warm womb too early.

And the responsible for this tragedy is no other than Steve Rogers, Tony’s Alpha. The only person he _ever_ trusted Tony with. Rogers had _rejected_ his Omega and his children, and left them to _die_ in that frigid wasteland! Jim can’t believe he was so stupid to confide the other Alpha with the most important person in his life. He can’t believe that _Captain Fucking America_ is another Stone, only much, much worse. Sadly, the evidence is overwhelming. But right now he has to think about Tony, not about how much he wants to kill Rogers (slowly, painfully, _relishing_ it…).

So he swallows his rage, his impotency, his fear; and makes a decision.

“Dr. Cho; as Tony Stark’s health medical proxy in case of emergencies, and due to the abundant evidence that affirms his Alpha, Captain Rogers is the responsible for my friend’s state, I’ll enforce the power Tony gave me. I authorize you to wake him as soon as he is stabilized and the…the miscarriage is dealt with. I won’t take this decision out of his hands; not when he is already lost so much.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, how was it? Sad, right? Yeah...well, the real angst is just begenning.  
> WARNING: The link takes you to a photo. That photo is of an actual 13 week fetus, I managed to find one; because I wanted an even stronger reaction.  
> Leave me a comment, a kudos, an idea... ;P

**Author's Note:**

> So?? How was it?? Leave me a kudos, a comment, an idea, maybe something that you'd like it to read or something that didn't click withing you on CW... I adore reading your opinions!
> 
> Kisses


End file.
